SkymonkeyONE

A few years ago somebody had a HUGE RC blimp at WFFC that they were flying around. It was fucking nuts! The guy was doing crazy aerbatics with it. I seriously thought it was a "real" blimp (with people on board) for a while; it was that big. Chuck

Agreed! Back when I used to really like four-way (late '80s/early '90s), if the weather was crappy we would do "ten from two" days (ten jumps from two grand), chunking exits from the C-182 and going through the first set (or until we got scared!). Lovely jumps under hard and fast-opening mains.

I was incredibly surprised when, at the PIA symposium in 2003, Strong did NOT introduce a tandem rig based on the stylish Quasar II sport rig. Instead, their "fantastic breakthrough" was their "per jump" lease program. Ugh. It fascinates me that Strong sells any of their butt-ugly tandem rigs at all. Some companies are just so resistant to change that they simply lose sight of what the jumping (and professional skyding instructor) really wants. I think a Quasar-based tandem rig would sell like hot-cakes. This, of course, assuming they also incorporate some, what I consider to be mandatory, things like retractable drogue releases. Just my thoughts. Chuck "not a moderator in this forum"

Matt, the very cleanest linked, gainer exit I ever did in my life was with Perry at the Hog Flop two years ago.

If I were not regulated as to what the minimum age passenger I could take, my simple answer would be that I would gladly take ANY passenger large enough to fill my student harness securely at it's tightest settings. Chuck

Is that worse then "So f--ing wasted!"? Yes. Absolutely.

My two favorite teams are AUBURN and ANYONE playing Bama. Did anyone else see Auburn KICK ASS this weekend?! WAR DAMN EAGLE!

Perris has great food, as does Eloy. Carbone cooks great chow wherever he is. Deland has some good biscuits and gravy at breakfast time. Still, I am all about the big helpings of simple, man-chow that Janine at Z-hills cooks up. I am all about some open faced roast beef! Chuck

That dude was incredibly wasted. Holy shit.

Well, Katie passed her Basic Rider Course at the local community college, so it was time to let her ride the Buell. Here are pics from her first ride.

Eloy: the bent prop. A fantastic bar with good food on the restaurant side Perris: The Bombshelter. Again, great food and the bar is great on weekends and events . Raeford: Aviators. Thank god it's stumbling distance to my camper! Lots of drunken rednecks to fight with if you are so inclined. Deland: not The Perfect Spot, but instead The Airport Bar. You can get liquor at the "real" bar and it's an easy stumble back to The Spot if you left your car there.

Hey Chris, what about those of us who will be coming but not really interested in the team event? Last time I competed at SkyQuest my teammate and I were told by the judges that we could not compete if we used our practiced (crossing) setup. As I seriously doubt that I will have anyone to practice with at Raeford prior to the meet, I am just wondering how a person's standings would be affected if they could not compete in that event? Not that I am going to win anything at that meet, but I would just like some clarification on how the individual scores (for ranking) are to be tabulated. Chuck

What Scott said. It was very, very common for me to "blow by" my mask on exhalation on HALO jumps above about 20k. I am not sure if it was a product of a faulty valve or just the fact that the regulator kicks up the positive pressure so high at that altitude that you are sort of taking in the air like "drinking from a firehose". Any way you look at it, I really hate the effect and it positively sucks to have the blow-by fog up your goggles at altitude when you have a ton of shit strapped to you. Not sure what you guys used for bottles and fittings, but I can tell you that the best place to put a "standard" set of twin 53's is to hang them sideways under your rig by the laterals and route the hose (and AirOx 8) inside the suit through the hole that your legstrap hardware goes through. Still, there are far, far tidier setups to use these days and I doubt I would consider regular HALO bailout bottles for any wingsuit altitude jumps these days. The stuff that Mike Forsythe uses is much smaller, is good for five minutes after activation, and is actually really cheap to buy (like $300). Chuck

I think it's great to try different things. As to the "workout" part of it, that's just a bonus. It really is a cool looking suit, Jason.

That "G" rating shit really cracks me up.

Neither one of you monkeys are smart shoppers apparently!

That's a totally accurate post. I would never recommend that a skydiver use Jungle boots to skydive in. There is absolutely no cushioning in those boots and they really don't provide nearly the ankle support as most alternatives. Rocky makes a really nice boot with a spongy sole very-similar to the old French Paraboots. Newer-school? Oakley assault boots are light, have good ankle support, and have good cushioning. They soles are a bit too "grippy" for skydiving in my opinion, but that's just my personal preference.

This information is a bit dated (Feb 2003), but when I went to PD rep training, Bushman told me that they could actually make someone a new Excallibur if they really, really wanted one. All of the patterns are stored in the computers and it's not really a big deal to have the laser cutter whip the parts out. While most folks wouldn't want to purchase a new "discontinued" canopy, it's fantastic to know that the factory has the ability to replicate any part needed to affect repair on your "older" canopy. You would have to ask Kolla if the first statement I made is still accurate, but I can promise you it was back then. PD has an amazing facility. Chuck

We have always taught 16 year-olds to skydive at Raeford. We have been doing so, safely, for over 35 years. We do primarilly AFF, but still offer SL to those who choose that methodology. It costs the same in the end. Under 18 we just require notarized parental consent. It helps that there is a notary about 1/4 mile up the road. Chuck Blue AFF/SL/TM-I, PRO, BMCI

I exit with my wings way back and I generally dive to the side. If I am with a student, I drop straight off and down with my wings in near my handles.

We routinely do tandems for 16 year-olds at Raeford now that the USPA says we can. By the way, our school owner is also the conference director.

Sunshine? Maybe she wrecked another golf cart.

Jay, I am incredibly hesitant to either offer or bid for anything on E-bay. Thankfully, it was never my gig anyway, so I don't feel bad. My one and only E-bay experience ended with Katie and I getting shafted on two electric scooters. Never again. If I see something that I like on there, I will simply contact the person by other means and work the deal another way.

The original Phi demo we got is very, very big.

Doesn't Eric Butts manage San Marcos these days? I am going to have to call him and punk him into flying a suit. Doesn't Perry have a really big demo? If not, we have a Phi that will fit him. Chuck